Intl. firms negotiate $200 billion of oil deals in Iran

Asian and European companies are negotiating participation in Iran’s oil and gas development projects which need $200 billion worth of investment, according to Minister of Oil Bijan Zangeneh.

Iran looks to absorb 65% to 70% of this sum from abroad, the minister told Iran’s Parliament where he was Tuesday to answer questions about a $5 billion gas deal signed with French giant Total earlier this month.

According to Press TV, Deputy Minister of Oil for International Affairs Amir Hosssein Zamaninia said the deal with Total has set the ball rolling for the conclusion of more contracts with international companies.

“I can assure you this isn't the last one. We'll see other contracts being made within the next few weeks," Zamaninia was quoted as saying on the sidelines of a conference in Istanbul on Tuesday.

Companies most interested

Zamaninia cited BP, Russia's Gazprom and Lukoil, and Malaysia's Petronas among the international companies which were having discussions with the country.

According to Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Iranian Petroleum Federation Reza Paydar, Denmark has proposed a $1 billion investment contribution to Iran's development plans, adding the two sides will soon begin to establish communication in this regard.

“The highest interest in investing in our country has been received from Austria, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Germany, and in a very limited form from Italy and Spain,” he told IRNA.

In the upstream sector, 53 projects are currently prioritized with an estimated $108 billion in foreign investment.

“Our expectation is that this amount will be realized within a maximum of three to five years, which will pave the way for future investments in the next program,” Paydar said.

On Tuesday, Zamaninia told the Istanbul conference that Iran's gas production would rise to 1 billion cubic meters a day by the end of the year from the current 800 million cubic meters (mcm) per day.

The country plans to establish a capacity for 365 mcm a day of gas exports by 2021, which is higher than the volume which the world's top liquefied natural gas producer Qatar is currently exporting.